The dictionary defines the word freedom as “the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint; the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved.” Growing up, a female can make this quite difficult. I have had several discussions with male cousins and friends, and it seems to me that they have no idea what it’s like to grow up female. Young girls learn they have to be responsible for what others may think, say, or do.
Early in our young lives, we have to try not to be too friendly or too sweet. We have to be careful if we’re considered too athletic or even too pretty. Girls shouldn’t be too smart or have too much of an opinion and for goodness sake don’t dream too much. The early indoctrination of young girls to take on the responsibility of how males they come into contact with perceive them hinders their freedom.
Generationally, girls have been raised or trained to be partners to their male counterparts. However, this “training” isn’t geared toward a partnership. More than often, it leans more toward a relationship where the girls are giving more than they are receiving, and all relationships need to be reciprocal in order to be healthy. This misplaced responsibility stifles their childhood. All of a sudden, they are forced to think about things boys aren’t even aware of. Don’t get me wrong; boys have growing pains too.
However, if you look around and notice any young man, you’ll see, he walks through life as if he owns the world. He doesn’t have a care. Now I know some of you are thinking, how can I say that in this day and age of young men being shot by the police. But I’m not talking about the twenty-something young men caught up in the violence that’s plaguing us. I’m talking about the eight, nine, and ten-year-olds walking the halls of any elementary school. They don’t have the worries that have been placed upon young girls. It is incumbent upon us to restore that feeling of freedom to girls: the freedom to be friendly, sweet, athletic, pretty, smart, opinionated dreamers.
It is our job to fill them with love and positivity because the world can be a cruel place for those who go against the grain. We need to teach our entire family about gender bias and work hard to work against it. When the boys and men in a girl’s life value female voices, it frees them to express themselves. This freedom is a chance for them to be better and to do better for the next generation of young girls coming up behind them. Someone once said, “Little girls with dreams become women with vision,” and we need those women around.